Home › Belgium
Excellent: 89Good: 35Sufficient: 4Not classified: 2Poor: 1
⚠️ Rated Poor in Belgium — think twice
A Poor classification means persistent contamination across recent seasons. Authorities must advise against bathing, or ban it, at these sites.
- Dessel - Campinastrand Poor
✅ The safest bets in Belgium
Sites that have held the top rating five seasons in a row — not a one-year fluke.
- Beernem Gevaerts Zuid Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Gent Blaarmeersen Peuterspeelkreek Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Jabbeke Klein Strand Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Middelkerke Rotonde - Westende Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Middelkerke Houyouxstraat Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Mol Zilvermeer Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Westerlo Camping 't Heultje Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Knokke-heist Lekkerbek Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- De Haan Centrum Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Hoogstraten de Mosten Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Lille Lilse Bergen (groot) Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
- Lommel Blauwe Meer Excellent ✅ Excellent five seasons straight
📍 Destinations in Belgium
Common questions about swimming in Belgium
Is it safe to swim in Belgium?
Mostly yes. 69% of Belgium's 131 officially monitored bathing sites hold the top "Excellent" class in the 2025 assessment, but 1 site is rated Poor — bathing there is advised against or banned all season.
Which beaches in Belgium should I avoid?
The 1 rated Poor: Dessel - Campinastrand. Poor means the site failed the minimum standard across four seasons of sampling.
Where is the water cleanest in Belgium?
73 sites have held the top rating five seasons running — a far better signal than a single good year. Around Ostend, Brussels you will find the densest clusters.
How often is water quality tested in Belgium?
Through the whole bathing season. National sanitary authorities sample each official site for E. coli and intestinal enterococci, report to the European Environment Agency, and the published class reflects the last four seasons combined.
Ratings are the official season-long classification, computed from the last four seasons of sampling — not a live reading. After a storm any site can be temporarily worse; local advisories win.